In
2002, The U.S. Air Force Aircraft Structural Integrity Program,
or ASIP, recognized NASA engineer Royce Forman with its John W. Lincoln Award.

Royce
Forman,
Johnson Space Center,Houston, Texas

The
lifelong work of a NASA engineer makes flight safer

March 2003
-- Royce Forman has been a leader in the field of structural integrity
and safety of aircraft for more than 40 years.

In December
2002, the U.S. Air Force Aircraft Structural Integrity Program,
or ASIP, recognized Forman's expertise. The award is in honor of
a structural integrity and safety pioneer, John W. Lincoln, and is presented every year to a distinguished career expert who has
made significant contributions toward advancements in aircraft structural
integrity and safety.

"It was
a surprise to receive the award," Forman said.

Forman's career
began to excel at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. There
he investigated crack problems in Vietnam War aircraft. During those
investigations he initiated the use of fracture mechanics to examine
aircraft in the Air Force, studying the growth rate and the instability
of crack defects. He also developed the universally known "Forman
Equation" used in predicting the growth rate of fatigue cracks.

Forman then
moved to Nassau Bay, Texas, to work at NASA's Johnson Space Center, or JSC, in 1967. He is now the senior engineer overseeing fracture
mechanics technology, testing and development at JSC. One of his
biggest achievements was to initiate the development of a fracture
control analysis software code.

He formed the
NASA Fracture Control Methodology Panel and originated the Space
Act Agreement between NASA and the Southwest Research Institute
to develop the software. He now manages NASA's role in a 13-company
consortium to maintain and upgrade the software program.

The software
Forman developed is called NASGRO™. It helps engineers analyze
fatigue crack growth, as well as assess the structural life of materials
and the effects of stress on the equipment. Many companies outside
of NASA, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense and the Federal
Aviation Administration, use the NASGRO™ software program.

"My career
achievements were made possible by the excellent support, encouragement
and freedom in research that I have received while working in my
particular technical field for NASA," Forman said. "The assistance
of my Lockheed Martin contractor support team for NASGRO™ software
development and fracture mechanics research has been significant
and indispensable. The five team members have all been supporting
this work for a period of 15 to 25 years. I extend my deepest gratitude
to Dr. V. Shivakumar, Dr. Sambi Mettu, Mr. Joachim Beek, Mr. Leonard
Williams and Mr. Feng Yeh."

As the JSC
representative of the NASA Fracture Control Methodology Panel, Forman
also spearheaded the development and publication of NASA's fracture
control requirements documents for space shuttle payloads and the
International Space Station. He continues to contribute to the field
of structural integrity by authoring papers and publications. As
a result, much of his work is internationally recognized, included
in technical books and taught in college courses.

For his dedicated
efforts throughout the years, Forman has received a Silver Snoopy
Award, numerous performance awards from NASA and a Man of the Year
award from the Air Force Flight Dynamics Laboratory.

His most recent
recognition from the Air Force was a true honor for Forman. "I
attend the ASIP conference every year and personally know all of
the six previous winners," he said. "There are a number
of people that deserve the award and I hoped that someday I would
be honored."